Irving Spector
(1893-1980)
Sophie Braun
(1898-1985)
Stanley Spector
(1924-1999)

 

Family Links

Spouses/Children:
1. Juanita Miller

2. Betty P. Ei-Shan Yue

Stanley Spector 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

  • Born: 10 Jun 1924, New York, New York, NY 4 5 6 7 8
  • Marriage (1): Juanita Miller in 1944 in , Brooke, WV, USA 1
  • Marriage (2): Betty P. Ei-Shan Yue
  • Died: 29 Jan 1999, Saint Louis, St. Louis, MO at age 74 6 7
  • Buried: Lemay: Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery, St. Louis, MO, USA 7

  Noted events in his life were:

1. Military from 14 Sep 1942 to 28 Dec 1943: World War II.

2. Residence: 1550 Townsend Ave., Bronx, NY on 23 Jun 1951 in Bronx, Bronx, NY, USA. 4 9

3. He was educated at Phd from University of Washington in 1954 in Seattle, King, WA.

4. Occupation: He was a professor at Washington University in Saint Louis starting in 1955. His biography appears on the Washington University website. in 1955 in Saint Louis, St. Louis, MO. 5 The Annual Stanley Spector Memorial Lecture on East Asian History and Civilization was founded in 1994 to honor Dr. Stanley Spector (1925-1999) for his tremendous contributions to the creation and development of Asian Studies at Washington University. Born in New York City in 1924, Spector received a bachelor's degree in education in 1946 from the City College of New York. He served briefly in the U.S. Naval Reserves during World War II and subsequently earned a doctorate in East Asian history in 1954 from the University of Washington in Seattle, with additional study at the London School of Oriental and African Studies in 1950-51. Spector came to the University in 1955 and served as chair of the Department of Chinese and Japanese (now East Asian Languages and Cultures) from its inception in 1963 until 1973. He also served as chair of the Committee on Asian Studies (now the East Asian Studies program) and as director of International Studies from 1971 to 1989. He was granted emeritus status in 1989.

5. Newspaper: St. Louis Post Dispatch: Suit For Divorce filed by Stanley Spector, 21 Aug 1961, Saint Louis, St. Louis, MO. 10 SUIT FOR DIVORCE FILED BY STANLEY SPECTOR
A suit for divorce by Stanley Spector, associate professor of Far Eastern Affairs at Washington University, was on file in circuit court at Clayton today. Alleging general Indignities, the petition said Mrs. Spector had been quarrelsome and accused him falsely about association with other women. He asked that his wife, Juanita, receive custody of their three minor children and that the court fix reasonable alimony and support payments. Spector is 37 years old, his wife 40. The Spec tor home is at 6300 Southwood avenue, Clayton. Mrs. Spector was a witness at the murder trial of Willem Van Rie, radio operator in a Dutch ship, in the death of Mrs. Lynn Kauffman, 23-year-old divorcee, who had been Specter's research assistant. Her badly beaten body was found in Boston harbor Sept. 19, 1959. She had accompanied Mrs. Spector and the Spector children on a 44-day voyage from the Orient. Spector had returned by air. Van Rie was acquitted of the murder charge requisite Fall 1961.

6. Newspaper: Lexington Herald: "Thai Jetline Crashes; 16 Americans Missing" - Stanley survived a jetliner crash in Hong Kong, 1 Jul 1967, Lexington, Fayette, KY. Thai Jetline Crashes; 16 Americans Missing
HONG KONG -- A Thai jetline carrying 58 American tourists plunged into Hong Kong Harbor on Friday as it tried to land in fog and a rain squall. Of 80 aboard, 21 are known dead, three are missing and 56 survived. Sixteen Americans were unaccounted for.
<snip> Two Americans, Dr. Stanly Spector of St. Louis, Mo., and Mrs. Glen Whitlock of Laguna Beach, Calif. told graphic stories of what happened next.
"Everything seemed to be normal, a routine landing, and then suddenly there were three very heavy bumps and water began pouring into the cabin," Spector said.
"The bumps were so hard that seats were twisted and jammed and some passengers could not get life belts out of the seat pockets."
"The plaine did not break up. The rear entrance in the tourist section opened immediately -- I don't know if it popped open or some member of the crew got it open and a lot of us aboard were able to get out that way."
Spector carried his wife, who had had a foot operation. to a door, swam with her to a wing tip, then on to an inflatable aircraft life raft. He helped six others onto the raft."
A small Chines fishing boat came along and took them ashore.


.

7. Residence: on 11 Apr 1989 in New York, New York, NY. 2

8. Newspaper: St. Louis Post-Dispatch: article about Hurricane Andrew mentions Stanley Spector owns apartment in Jupiter, FL, 25 Aug 1992, Saint Louis, St. Louis, MO. 11 Clayton residents Betty and Stanley Spector own an apartment in Jupiter, near Miami. Stanley Spector's brother owns the adjacent apartment, and on Monday, the couple's concern was for him. At midmorning, they learned to their relief that the brother had fled inland. And their apartment? They won't know until the brother can return to Jupiter. But Betty Spector said, "Stanley's brother is fine that's what's important."

9. Newspaper: St. Louis Post Dispatch: article about Stanley Spector, 31 Jan 1999, Saint Louis, St. Louis, MO. 6 STANLEY SPECTOR, 74; TAUGHT ASIAN STUDIES AT WASHINGTON U.

Stanley Spector, an international scholar and authority on China, died Friday (Jan. 29, 1999) of pancreatic cancer at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. The former Washington University professor and administrator was 74 and lived in Clayton.

Mr. Spector was a China watcher most of his life. As a 6-year-old growing up in New York, he became fascinated with China through the movies and local Chinese New Year celebrations. On learning from a Chinese friend of the Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1931, he saved his allowance for the China War Relief Fund.

After naval service in World War II, he studied Chinese culture and language at the University of Washington at Seattle, where he earned his doctorate. He taught Chinese and Far Eastern history there and at City College of New York, the University of California at Los Angeles and a school in Singapore.

He came to Washington University in 1955 and was the first to teach Asian studies at the university, including classes in Chinese and Japanese languages, which he initially taught without salary and without academic credit because of a prejudice against Asian languages by college language departments. Later he helped found the Mark Twain Summer Institute, whose classes in Chinese and Japanese were soon adopted by eight local high schools.

Mr. Spector established the Department of Chinese and Japanese at Washington University in 1962 with money from the Ford, Carnegie and Mellon foundations and through the new National Defense Education Act.

In the early 1960s, he began assembling a large core library of books and materials on East Asia in English, Chinese and Japanese for the university. He initiated student exchange programs with several Japanese universities.

The author of books and articles on China and East Asia, he was an early supporter of admitting China into the United Nations and normalizing U.S. relations, long before President Richard Nixon's "open door" visit in 1972.

He was one of the first to take advantage of the lifting of a travel ban the next year, making his first visit to mainland China at the invitation of the Chinese Academy of Science and Beijing University. He visited other cities, including Nanjing, and on his return, he helped form the St. Louis-Nanjing Sister City program, the first between a U.S. city and one in the People's Republic.

He later led St. Louis trade delegations to Nanjing and helped establish exchanges between the Missouri Botanical Garden and the Nanjing Botanical Garden.

Mr. Spector visited Asia at least once a year for many years. In 1967, he and his Shanghai-born wife, Betty, survived a crash of a Thai jetliner in Hong Kong's harbor; 24 of the 80 passengers died.

In 1994, the university established the annual Stanley Spector Lecture in East Asian History and Civilization.

Mr. Spector was an accomplished violinist and violist.

Plans for a memorial concert on the campus are pending. Those interested in the arrangements may call Debra Jones at (314) 935-5156.

Among the survivors, in addition to his wife, are a daughter, Stephanie Van Denberg of Long Island, N.Y.; sons Lee Spector of Woodbury Heights, N.J., and Jon Spector of Atlanta; stepsons Pat Lee Spector of Ladue and Dr. David Lee of Cape Girardeau, Mo.; a brother, Dr. Bertram Spector of Juno Beach, Fla.; five grandchildren, and a great-granddaughter.

The family requested donations to the Stanley Spector Memorial Fund, Busch Hall 117, Washington University, St. Louis, Mo. 63130.

10. Newspaper: St. Louis Post Dispatch: obituary of Stanley Spector, 31 Jan 1999, Saint Louis, St. Louis, MO. 12 Stanley Spector, an international scholar and authority on China, died Friday (Jan. 29, 1999) of pancreatic cancer at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. The former Washington University professor and administrator was 74 and lived in Clayton.

Mr. Spector was a China watcher most of his life. As a 6-year-old growing up in New York, he reveled in Chinese New Year celebrations in his neighborhood. On learning from a friend of the Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1931, he saved his allowance for the China War Relief Fund.

After naval service in World War II, he studied Chinese culture and language at the University of Washington at Seattle.tLater he taught Chinese and Far Eastern history there and at City College of New York, the University of California at Los Angeles and a school in Singapore.

He came to Washington University in 1955 and was the first to teach Asian studies at the university, including classes in classical and modern Chinese and Japanese languages, which he initially taught without salary a nd without academic credit because of a lingering prejudice by college language departments.

Mr. Spector established the Department of Chinese and Japanese at the university in 1962.

He initiated year-abroad student exchange programs to Japan.

He first visited mainland China in 1973 and was an early supporter of admission of China into the United Nations and normalizing U.S. relations.

He visited Asia at least once a year for many years. On a trip in 1967, he and his Shanghai-born wife, Betty, survived a crash of a Thai jetliner in Hong Kong's harbor; 24 of the 80 passengers died.

In 1994 the university established the annual Stanley Spector Lecture in East Asian History and Civilization.

He was an accomplished violinist and violist.

Plans for a memorial service are pending. Those interested in the arrangements can call Debra Jones at (314) 935-5156.

Among the survivors, in addition to his wife, are a brother, Dr. Bertram Spector of Juno Beach, Fla.; a daughter, Stephanie Van Denberg of Long Island, N.Y.; two sons, Lee Spector of Woodbury Heights, N.J., and Jon Spector of Atlanta, Ga.; two stepsons, Pat Lee Spector of Ladue and Dr. David Lee of Cape Girardeau, Mo.; five grandchildren; and a great-granddaughter.

The family requested donations be made to the Stanley Spector Memorial Fund, Busch Hall 117, Washington University, St. Louis, Mo. 63130-4899.

11. Newspaper: St. Louis Post Dispatch: Stanley Spector Memorial Service, 6 Mar 1999, Saint Louis, St. Louis, MO. 13 SERVICE FOR STANLEY SPECTOR WILL BE HELD ON APRIL 9 AT WU

A memorial service for Stanley Spector, a China expert, author, violinist and Washington University professor, will be at 1:30 p.m. April 9 at the university's Graham Chapel.

A reception will follow in the university's Holmes Lounge.

Professor Spector, a resident of Clayton, died Jan. 29 at Barnes-Jewish Hospital of cancer. He was 74.


Stanley married Juanita Miller, daughter of Harvey Horatio Miller Sr. and Ida Susan Beeker, in 1944 in , Brooke, WV, USA.1 The marriage ended in divorce in 1961. (Juanita Miller was born on 17 Sep 1920 in , Rowan, NC 3 14.)


Stanley next married Betty P. Ei-Shan Yue, daughter of T. M. Yue and Unknown. (Betty P. Ei-Shan Yue was born on 30 Nov 1921 in Shanghai, , Shanghai, CHN.)


Sources


1 FamilySearch.org, West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F1KT-TZ5 Stanley Spector and Juanita Miller, 1944; citing Brooke, West Virginia; FHL microfilm 869,651.

2 Greensboro News & Record (Greensboro, NC), 13 Apr 1989, page 58. Obituary of Mrs. Ida Beeker Miller.

3 FamilySearch.org, North Carolina Birth Index, 1800-2000, https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VC3Y-6P2 Juanita Miller, 17 Sep 1920 citing vol. 9, p. 875, Rowan, North Carolina, North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh.

4 FamilySearch.org, New York, New York Passenger and Crew Lists, 1909, 1925-1957, https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:24B4-D9B Stanley Spector, 1951.

5 Washington University (St. Louis, MO), https://eas.wustl.edu/events/lecture-series/spector-lecture biography of Stanley Spector.

6 St. Louis Post-Dispatch (St. Louis, Missouri), 31 Jan 1999. Stanley Spectory, 74; Taught Asian Studies at Washington U.

7 Find A Grave, http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=81220410.

8 Ancestry.com, U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 (Original data: Social Security Applications and Claims, 1936-2007.), SSN 071-18-7550 Stanley Spector Father Irving Spector. Mother Sophie Braun.

9 FamilySearch.org, New York, New York Passenger and Crew Lists, 1909, 1925-1957, https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:24B4-D91 Juanita Spector, 1951.

10 St. Louis Post-Dispatch (St. Louis, Missouri), 21 Aug 1961, page 3A.

11 St. Louis Post-Dispatch (St. Louis, Missouri), 25 Aug 1992, page 3A.

12 St. Louis Post-Dispatch (St. Louis, Missouri), 31 Jan 1999, obituary of Stanley Spector.

13 St. Louis Post-Dispatch (St. Louis, Missouri), 6 Mar 1999, Service for Stanley Specator Will Be Held on April 9 at WU.

14 Ancestry.com, U.S., Public Records Index, 1950-1993, Volume 2, Juanita Spector. Flushing, NY.



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